Disintegrate
by InvaderProfessorMembrane
Summary: Dib learns the hard way that clones never live as long as naturally-created organisms. He has to deal with the burden of dying before his family's, and his own, eyes. His prognosis is unknown: will science find a way to rescue him from his demise, or is his deterioration terminal?
1. Chapter 1

**(A/N: okay. I'm determined to finish this story. I don't care how lazy I get, or how much writer's block I have, I will finish it! I'm even planning on posting it on dA and tumblr, just to SEAL THE PACT.**

 **Anyway, hope you guys enjoy! I'm really excited about this.)**

The clock ticked in slow motion.

With every agonizing tick of the clock's second hand, Dib grew more and more impatient. The last five minutes of school could well be dragged out until the end of time. Zim wasn't at school that day, which meant that he was probably taking the day off to plan humanity's demise. Dib had to get out of school already so he could find out what Zim was surely up to!

He was snapped out of his thoughts by the heavenly ring of the school bell. Yes! He got up from his chair so fast that he knocked it over, but he didn't care.

Maneuvering through the crowded hallways was a difficult task. It seemed that he wasn't the only one eager to leave school as soon as possible on a Friday afternoon.

At last, he managed to squeeze his way to freedom. The refreshing air on his face filled him with hope. He ran the whole way back to his house. Leaning against the door, he reached for the keys. Man! He was completely worn out from running at full speed. He unlocked the door, and, as expected, he was greeted with complete silence. His father was at work, of course, which is what he was counting on— to stop Zim, he'd have to use his father's lab, which he was strictly prohibited to use regarding the paranormal. Gaz wasn't home yet— Dib sped home, while Gaz took her time. For about five minutes, he'd have the house to himself.

Grabbing a water bottle, he walked upstairs. He logged onto his computer, accessing the security cameras he'd hidden in Zim's lab. He admitted to himself that that _was_ a little creepy, but… it would all be worth it once humanity was surely saved from a horrible demise!

He pulled up the footage and maximized it. He couldn't hear what was going on, but Zim was standing there, yelling at Gir, using erratic hand motions and facial expressions. The sound kicked in shortly after. Dib smiled and prided himself for the security cameras.

"No, Gir!" He yelled. Gir was on the floor, stuffing peanuts into his mouth. "The peanuts are part of the plan! They will go into the specially designed peanut-shooting gun! It will be the perfect thing to annoy the humans with!" Zim smiled evilly.

Dib rolled his eyes. Oh, come on! He sped all the way home and stressed all day at school for _this_?

"Just be patient, Gir. The peanuts are only a distraction! If the humans are being pelted in the face with the delicious snack-nuts, then they will not pay attention to the REAL plan! I will create a—"

"WHAT'S THAT?!" Gir cut him off and looked into the security camera. "Hehe! I'm gonna eat you!"

Dib began to panic as Gir ripped the security camera off of the wall and began to shove it in his mouth.

"No!" Dib yelled as the screen turned to static. He got up. Whatever Zim's real plan was, it was probably huge!

He ran into his father's lab. He held his breath for a moment, knowing that there might be a slight chance that his father was in there. To his relief, it was empty. He walked down the metal stairs, listening to his footsteps echo. Whatever Zim's plan was, it had to be stopped. Dib decided to build a giant robot that he could control remotely. Of course it would be huge, and of course it would be equipped with dangerous weaponry. He had to be sure to eradicate Zim. Plus, it would probably look really neat.

Gathering the supplies was easy enough: titanium metal, fuel, super-cool rocket bomb weapons… just the essentials. Now came the tricky part: actually assembling it.

He laid out all of the pieces on the table. He smiled. It would be hard work, but he was certainly up for it. It _was_ for the good of mankind, after all. He crossed the lab to where his father kept the tools. Thank God his father gave him a full tour of the lab… several times. He sighed. He felt slightly bad for disappointing his father. But surely he'd feel better after saving mankind yet again.

Changing his attitude, he made his way across the dimly-lit lab. He rummaged through the tool drawer, looking for some bolts and a wrench. Grabbing what he needed, he jogged across.

A sudden sharp pain in his side made him halt. He dropped everything he had in his hands, shuddering at the loud clanging sounds they made. He grabbed his side, fighting back tears. This was probably the most excruciating pain he'd ever experienced! It felt like his skin had literally ripped open!

Whimpering, he staggered up the lab's stairs. Something warm seeped through his shirt— blood, predictably. Had his skin actually ripped open? But how? That defied all logic whatsoever.

He ran into the bathroom, inspecting the wound. It looked more or less like a deep gash. Dib was no expert, but it looked like it needed stitches. It looked pretty bad, and it was bleeding quite profusely. Dib knew he couldn't tell anyone about this. If his dad found out he was down in the lab to work on things related to "para-science", he would probably flip.

He ran downstairs again and put the supplies away. Dib didn't know exactly how he got injured, but it must have happened in the lab. That was the only possible explanation. Whatever it was must have been extremely sharp. It sliced through his flesh with ease! He guessed that the blood loss was getting to him— the wrench was almost impossible to carry! How effortlessly he'd picked it up before… now, he could barely even walk.

Defeated, he dropped it. If his dad questioned him, he could probably just make up a stupid lie.

The stairs were a maze now— there was no way Dib would make it up. He weakly staggered over to where the gauze was, wrapping it around him. He tightened it. Suddenly he couldn't stand. He sank down to his knees and then the world faded to black…

Professor Membrane inserted the key into the door and stepped inside the house. It was around eleven PM— for their sake, he sure hoped his kids were asleep. It was a week day, after all.

He set his briefcase down by the door and walked into the kitchen, brewing some coffee. It was kind of late to be drinking coffee, but he had to type up the conclusion to a recent experiment. Hopefully it wouldn't take him more than an hour and a half. He knew that was just wishful thinking, though, and prepared himself to stay up for another four hours at the most.

Turning the doorknob to his lab, he took a swig of the warm drink. He flicked on the fluorescent lights and descended the stairs. The sight of son sprawled unconscious on the floor, looking extremely pale, was not exactly what he was expecting to see. He nearly dropped the mug at the sickly sight of the boy. He caught it and set it on the table.

He shook Dib hard. "Son!" Professor Membrane yelled. "Wake up! Are you alright? What on earth are you doing sleeping on the floor?"

Dib opened his eyes. He felt dizzy and disoriented. Also, his side was killing him. He felt a dull throbbing ache there. He decided it must be getting infected.

Dib squinted. It was hard for him to remember what exactly had happened. Then, he remembered. Oh yeah! Zim's plan, building a robot, odd gash…

He sat up. His head had begun hurting, too. What a mess he was! "Uhhh…" he croaked. "I was just… here… building a robot… for science, you know? And…" he closed his eyes, as if thinking for a moment.

"Uh huh," Professor Membrane said. "Go on."

"I just… kinda… got tired, so I…" he was struggling to speak. "Laid down on the floor for a quick nap." And he wanted to continue it, too. His head began to spin.

Professor Membrane shook his head. "Nice try, but I'm not buying it." He knelt next to Dib, feeling his forehead. "You have a low-grade fever and you seem to be quite disoriented." He caught sight of the blood staining Dib's shirt. "Dear God!" he exclaimed, pointing to it. "What on earth happened to you? Why is there blood on your shirt?"

Dib looked down. "Oh… uh…" he stared. He couldn't keep lying. "I don't know," he admitted. "It just kind of appeared. My guess is I accidentally cut myself on something sharp, but—"

"But wouldn't your shirt be torn?" Professor Membrane interrupted. "If an object is sharp enough to cut your skin in such a manner, then it would probably cut your shirt too."

Dib just shrugged. He honestly wanted to go back to sleep.

"Well, let me inspect the wound." Professor Membrane took the gauze off and flinched. He immediately knew why Dib had a fever! The wound was practically purple. Pus flowed out of the gash, more so than blood. It also emitted an extremely foul odor.

"Come here," he demanded. "Let's get that washed out." He knew he had to take Dib to a doctor for antibiotics—even though he had several degrees in medicine and could prescribe controlled substances, he could not prescribe medication to his own son.

Dib stumbled forward, attempting to climb up the stairs. It was futile. Professor Membrane walked back over to Dib and scooped him up. "My poor son…" he whispered. Dib looked up at him. He noticed his father had not used the word, "insane". Did Professor Membrane actually feel _bad_ for him? It was simply a gash! It would heal in a week!

Professor Membrane carried Dib into the bathroom and poured some hydrogen peroxide on the wound. It bubbled immediately. Dib flinched. Oh, man it hurt!

Professor Membrane put more bandaging on it. Seemingly satisfied with his work, he nodded. "That should work for tonight," he said. Dib noticed that there was an almost hopeful tone in his father's voice. "Get some rest, now," he added. Dib was extremely thankful for those words. He was exhausted.

Professor Membrane carried Dib into his room and covered him with the sheets. "It's fine, Dad," Dib said. "You don't need to tuck me in."

Professor Membrane nodded. "Alright, son. Alright. Now, if there's anything wrong— anything at all— please, tell me. Immediately! I don't care if you wake up with the smallest amount of pain, I want to know about it." Professor Membrane took his goggles off and looked Dib in the eye. "Understood?"

Dib nodded. The urgency in his father's voice was really beginning to creep him out.

"Good. Now, get some rest. You need it."

Dib nodded. "Okay… night, Dad…"

"Goodnight," Professor Membrane replied.

Dib closed his eyes. Even though sleep came easy, his father's tone haunted him. He couldn't shake the fact that Professor Membrane knew something he didn't, and that something was very, very wrong.


	2. Chapter 2

Dib cracked his eyes open. Light flooded in from his window. The blinds did a poor job of blocking out light. Oh well. He wasn't really tired anyway.

He sat up and looked at the time. Ten-thirty AM! And it was a Wednesday! He was late for school! Why didn't his alarm go off? He leaned forward and noticed the little clock icon missing from his phone. Someone had come in and turned it off. It never even sounded in the first place!

He got up, walking down the stairs and into the kitchen. His father was sitting at the table, flipping through a science magazine. He spotted Dib and smiled. "Good morning, son!" He said.

"Morning…" Dib said skeptically. Why was his father even _here_? Shouldn't he be at work? And why did he sound so cheerful? As morbid as it sounded in his head, Dib was genuinely creeped out by his father's sudden cheeriness. "Sorry if this is sudden, but shouldn't you be at work?"

Professor Membrane laughed. "I'll be working from home today," he said. "I need to make sure you're alright, after all! That must have been a scary experience, huh?"

Dib eyed him. "Sure…"

"Let's check the wound, by the way," Professor Membrane said. "I see you can walk! That's a good sign." With a sudden motion, he grabbed Dib's hand and dragged him into the bathroom, removing the bandage. "Hm, it's still a little red, but it definitely looks better than last night. The pus has cleared up significantly."

Dib was relieved to hear his father's usual scientific talk instead of his weird happy talk.

Professor Membrane took out more hydrogen peroxide and poured it once more on Dib's wound. Dib flinched again. The sudden, sharp pain from the hydrogen peroxide still made him cringe.

"Well, son, I don't think you'll have to go to the doctor after all!" He said. "The infection is clearing up faster than I thought. All of that sleep must have done you some good."

Dib nodded. Whew! He knew his worrying was irrational. He just read way too much into his father's tone.

"You should be back at school tomorrow," Professor Membrane said with a nod.

Dib laughed. "Why'd you even keep me here today? It wasn't worth it."

"Just wanted to make sure that everything was okay," Professor Membrane said. He wrapped the bandage around Dib once more.

"What do you mean?"

"Wounds aren't anything to play around with. Especially not infected wounds."

Dib stared at his father. He had a sneaking suspicion that that wasn't the real reason, and he was pretty sure that something else was going on, but he wasn't about to press on further. Maybe this was his father's way of trying to get him to open up emotionally or something. If it was, it was really ineffective.

"Go get a glass of water or orange juice— something to drink. You need fluids." Professor Membrane patted Dib's shoulder and walked out of the bathroom. Dib shrugged. He was parched. He hadn't had anything to drink in about eighteen hours.

He went back upstairs and grabbed the water bottle from yesterday, drinking it thirstily. He sat at his computer again. He wondered if Zim was still not at school. He checked the security cameras, even though he knew it was probably futile. He was right. Static still filled the screen whenever he tried to access the cameras. He pounded his desk in frustration. He'd just have to go over there and install new security cameras.

He sighed, pocketing the spares and his cellphone. He knew he'd have to sneak out of the house. If his father caught him, he'd question him. He needed to get this done as efficiently and quickly as possible.

Poking his head into the kitchen, Dib looked around. There was no sign of his father except for an empty coffee cup and the magazine, which was neatly set down on the table. His father must have retreated into the lab for the day. That's exactly what he was counting on!

Even though there wasn't a big chance that Professor Membrane would pop up from the lab any time soon, Dib still made sure to be as stealthy as possible. He tip-toed across the living room and turned the doorknob. He kept in turned so when he shut the door, the latch wouldn't make any noise.

Priding himself on his sneakiness, Dib headed out. He ran to where Zim's house was, dodging the gnome's motion sensors. He suck into the basement through a trap door he had discovered. When he got to the bottom, he immediately heard Zim's voice. He held his breath and kept close to the wall, hiding behind various tubes and pipes. He attached a security camera behind one of the tubes. He attached another behind a computer monitor, and another on the ceiling. Then, he made a break for it. He climbed back up the trap door and into the yard, once more dodging the gnomes. He smiled once it was done. If it was socially acceptable to high-five himself, Dib would have done it. He felt so proud!

His moment of pride was cut short by a sudden ripping sensation in his back. Then, two on his abdomen. Then, one on his shoulder. One on his shin…

Immediately, he felt blood drip down. He knew instantly that they were gashes, like the one from the previous day. Oh no!

He contemplated his next course of action. He had to get home before he lost enough blood to knock him out. He bolted, but he immediately regretted the decision. Stars appeared in his field of vision, and loss of consciousness threatened him.

Dib limped towards the nearest street sign and leaned his back against it. He pulled out his phone and called Professor Membrane.

The phone rang twice before the Professor answered it. "Hello?"

"Dad," Dib sputtered. He was out of breath. His speech was also slurred.

"Son? Are you okay."

"Not— Not particularly. I'm not home. I got more of those, w… wou… wounds." He watched as blood dripped around him.

"Where are you?" Professor Membrane asked urgently. Dib could hear shuffling on the other end.

"I…" Dib looked up at the street sign. He could barely blurt out the name before his consciousness faded. The phone fell from his hands.

Professor Membrane heard the phone hit the concrete on the other end. He yelled Dib's name a few times, but he got no reply from the other end, as he knew would happen. Hopping into his car, he sped out of the cul-de-sac and over to the street Dib had told him he was on. Sure enough, there he was, slumped against the street sign and surrounded in his own blood. The Professor ran to him, setting him in the car and driving home. It was a miracle that no one stopped him to give him a ticket for speeding, but the day was so hot and ugly… the sun seemed to bleach the concrete, and even the trees seemed to strain under the sweltering heat, so no one was really out and about.

He carried Dib into the bathroom. Finding where the deep cuts were wasn't hard. He just had to look under the blood stains on his son's clothes. His heart wrenched, and he fought back tears. He thought he knew what was going on, but… so soon! He was expecting it to happen at around age forty, if it happened at all. But at age eleven? That was so young…

Professor Membrane forced himself to think clearly. He could not worry Dib about this. He hoped Dib would just blame it on coincidence, like last time. But what about when more appeared? Could he chalk it up to coincidence a third time? As soon as he reached home, he changed his mind and turned around, driving in the direction of the hospital.

Dr. Mary Steiner sat at her desk, typing rapidly on her computer. She was swamped that day, and the unexpected call forced her to rearrange her already hectic schedule.

A crisp knock at the door made her head snap up. "Come in," she said. The door opened, and Professor Membrane walked in.

"Thanks for agreeing to talk with me at such a short notice," he said apologetically. "But I can assure you it isn't for naught. You were the only one I could talk to about such an issue."

Like all doctors, Dr. Steiner didn't want to waste any time. "Go on," she said, trying to be polite but at the same time trying to use up as little time as possible.

Professor Membrane took a deep breath. "This is going to sound strange, but my son wasn't… created in the natural way. He is a test tube baby, but an extreme form of one. He didn't even grow in a uterus! He grew in a jar of liquid that resembled a uterus in terms of temperature, nutrients received… stuff like that."

Dr. Steiner didn't reply. Professor Membrane took this as a cue to go on. "He is a combination of my, and my wife's, DNA. Of course, my wife is long-gone, so there isn't a way he could ask her about this, but…" Professor Membrane took a deep breath. "Anyway. He is ninety percent my clone. As you know, clones have a shorter life expectancy than… well, non-clones. I knew I'd probably have to come to terms that I would outlive my son, but…" Professor Membrane sighed. "I didn't expect for it to happen so soon. Dib is only eleven. I didn't plan for this."

Dr. Steiner gave him a look. "What makes you think that he's dying?"

"The cuts on his body," Professor Membrane replied. "And the fact that they are all infected, or become infected almost immediately. I believe that this is his body's way of… beginning to decompose."

There was only silence in the room for a moment. Dr. Steiner nodded. "I think I understand. Unfortunately what you said is true: clones do generally live for a shorter amount of time than what they are cloned off of. No one is sure why, but one theory is that the clones DNA is older to begin with, so its life is shortened."

Professor Membrane nodded. He was beginning to get impatient. "Which is why we need to help him—"

"There is no way of reversing death, Professor," the doctor said, cutting him off. "If Dib is beginning to die, we can only slow the progression of the… disease?" Dr. Steiner didn't know what else to call it.

"That's what I aim to do," Professor Membrane said. "But I need your help. For one thing, I can't prescribe him medicine, since he is my son. I don't think it's allowed."

"It's not. Not in our state, anyway."

"Which is why I need you to do it for me," Professor Membrane said. "As a personal favor."

She stared at him for a while. "You understand what I'm doing for you is highly illegal, correct? It puts my job on the line. And you're someone I hardly even know. Why should I do this for you?" She looked at him.

Professor Membrane cringed. There wasn't a hint of remorse or kindness in her eyes. He took a deep breath. "Don't worry. I suspected that you'd react this way, so I didn't come empty handed." He fished his wallet out of his pocket and pulled a check out of it. It was already addressed to her. "This is a ten-thousand dollar check. Agree to do this, and I'll sign it. Then, it's yours."

Dr. Steiner bit the inside of her cheek. Ten grand was a lot of money, and all she had to do to get it was simply fill out a prescription form and pretend that Dib was her patient. That was simple enough. "How do you know I don't just say yes, take the money and then refuse to do it later?"

"That's a risk I'm going to have to take," Professor Membrane said. "Because I love my son. I want him to get better."

Dr. Steiner nodded. She admired Professor Membrane's trust towards her, and his love for his son. She let out a long sigh. He'd won her over with his bribe. "Fine. I'll do it. But you'd better pay me up-front. No offense, but I don't trust strangers."

Professor Membrane nodded. He signed the check without thinking twice. "There you go. It's all yours. But do keep your word; this is important to me." He stood up and pushed the chair in. "Thank you for your time. I have to get back to Dib before he regains consciousness. Waking up in a hospital room with no idea how you got there is terrifying. Waking up in a hospital with no idea how you got there with no one that you recognize is even _more_ terrifying." 

Dr. Steiner laughed. "You sound like you're speaking from experience."

"I am," Professor Membrane said quickly, walking out the door. He didn't care to elaborate, and she didn't care to hear it. Once the door clicked shut, Dr. Steiner continued with her work.

Sound was the first sense to return to Dib. He heard the faint, steady beeping of a heart monitor next to him. He also heard people talking and yelling from a distance.

With much struggle, he opened his eyes. His vision was blurry, and he could tell that his glasses were missing from his face. Almost instinctively, he reached over to grab them off of the nightstand. Then he realized the night stand wasn't there, and that his room didn't have a heart monitor in it…

He tried sitting up, but he felt too weak to do it. A hand rested on his shoulder.

"Shh," a voice said. It was Professor Membrane. Dib sighed in relief. "Don't sit up. Just rest. You've been through a lot."

Dib laid back down. The cuts on his body still hurt, but what had once felt like literally being stabbed had now subsided to a dull ache.

"What happened?" Dib asked. His voice was raspy, but that was mostly from the fatigue he felt. "Why am I in the hospital?"

Professor Membrane gave his son a small smile. "You just got a little hurt," he explained gently. "You'll be okay."

"How did I get hurt?" Dib asked. He was determined to wring out every bit of information from his father.

"You probably just fell," he replied. "Don't worry. They stitched you up and you're on pain medications right now."

Dib groaned. That wasn't what he wanted to hear. His father was definitely hiding something. "What else?"

"Nothing. That's the whole story." The slow, patronizing tone had not left Professor Membrane's voice. Dib narrowed his eyes, and he tried propping himself back up with his elbows once more. Professor Membrane shook his head and pushed Dib once more.

"Just lay down!" Professor Membrane said. Dib realized he didn't really have a choice and complied with his father's requests.

Both Professor Membrane and Dib were startled by the sound of the door opening. A friendly-looking doctor entered the room.

"Hello, Dib!" The doctor said with a smile. Dib didn't reply. The doctor's sanguine appearance annoyed him. "How are you feeling? Better?"

Dib laid still for a second. Irritated. Tired. Confused. Anxious. "I feel better than I did before," he said after a while. That was both true and untrue. He felt better physically, but that was nothing compared to the uncertainty and stress he felt. Plus, maybe if he could convince the physicians that he was feeling better, he would be able to get out of the hospital sooner.

The doctor wrote something down in his notebook. The cheerful atmosphere never left him. "Well, that's good to hear!" He said. Silence fell over the small room. Dib felt claustrophobic for a moment, as the suffocating silence spread through the room.

"We need to preform some people tests now, Dib," the doctor said. Dib could tell that under the doctor's chipper behavior, there was an air of seriousness around him. "We will make it as quick as possible. Just stay here." The doctor forced a toothy smile and rushed out.

"What kind of tests was this guy talking about, Dad?" Dib asked.

Professor Membrane honestly had no idea what they would be testing for. "Probably just a blood test," he said with a reassuring smile. "Nothing that you can't handle." The door opened, and the Professor turned his head. "Professor?" A voice called. "Can I have a word with you?"

Professor Membrane listlessly signed the papers that the doctors gave him— they were just forms confirming that he consented to the tests that they wanted to preform on Dib— then returned to the room. Dib had fallen asleep, to his relief. It would give him time to sit and think.

He knew he had to get Dib out of the hospital as soon as possible. If his suspicions about Dib dying earlier because he was a clone were correct, then he was the only one who could help Dib. He couldn't help but jiggle his leg in a sort of nervous tic. He knew he'd be on his own with this project, aside from the help of Dr. Steiner. _Dr. Steiner_. What if she decided one day that the media had to know about Dib being a clone? He suddenly regretted spilling his guts to her so quickly, but he didn't have much of a choice. He just had to take some kind of a leap of faith with this…

His thoughts were interrupted as the friendly doctor and a few nurses entered the room. Dib was shaken awake.

"Come on," the doctor said. "Testing time!"

Dib groaned. The tiredness still hasn't left him. "Okay…" he muttered, rubbing his eyes and climbing into the wheelchair they had presented him. He looked back at Professor Membrane. "See you soon, Dad," Dib said.

Professor Membrane nodded. "See you soon…" he replied. His mind was out of it.

A feeling grew in Professor Membrane's stomach. He didn't really recognize this feeling, but it was strong and motivational, like passion mixed with determination mixed with overwhelming anxiety. He didn't know what was going on with Dib, and he didn't know how it would end, but one thing was for sure: he wasn't giving Dib up without a fight.


	3. Chapter 3

**(A/N: So I realized this chapter was short, so this week I'll be publishing two short chapters instead of one long one because I don't think that combining them into one would work very well.**

 **PS: Thank you guys for your reviews. They are much appreciated. :D If I could send all of my reviewers a Dib plush… I** ** _would_** **.)**

Zim stared intently at the classroom door.

The Dib-beast had been absent now for an entire week. Yes, today marked a whole week without any sign of Dib! Zim grew paranoid. The wretched earth boy was probably at home, devising the most brilliant plan in the world to stop him, and he was here at the Skool, just… sitting around! He had to stop Dib before he actually succeeded with whatever his plan undoubtedly was.

"Miss Bitters?" Zim said, raising his hand.

The teacher glowered at him. "What, Zim?"

"I must use the bathroom."

Not waiting for a reply, Zim got up. He breathed a sigh of relief when he heard Miss Bitters continue with her lesson. He entered the bathroom and shut the door, then climbed out the window and headed over to Dib's house.

He banged on the door with his tiny fists. "Open up, Dib!" He demanded. "I know you're in there!"

The door swung open. Standing in the doorway was a robot, but it wasn't humanoid. It seemed its sole purpose was to answer doors.

"I'm sorry," said the robot in a calm voice. It had a slight English accent. "But the Membranes are not home right now."

Zim fumed. "Not home?" he demanded. "Where is the Dib?"

"I am not allowed to disclose that information," the robot said with the same, calm voice. "But if you wish to receive contact information, please tell me."

"I wish to receive contact information!" Zim blurted. He had to find Dib!

"Okay. Retrieving Professor Membrane's contact information…" the robot stopped, as if to buffer. "Is this for business reasons, or personal?"

Zim stared blankly. "It's for finding-the-Dib-worm-so-that-I-can-stop-his-plans reasons!"

"I'm sorry, but I do not underst—"

Zim shook the robot. "Just tell me where Dib is!"

A number soon dialed. A voice Zim recognized as the Dib's father-unit was on the other end.

"Hello?" the man said. His voice sounded tired.

"This is Zim!" Zim yelled without bothering to greet him back. "Why has your son not been at the Skool lately?"

There was silence on the other end. Zim was about to yell about being hung up on, but he received an answer before he had a chance.

"He's been at the hospital. He's very sick, Zim."

Zim stood there for a moment. He didn't expect that answer.

"You can come visit him if you'd like," Dib's father continued. "You two are close friends. I think he'd probably like that."

"Oh… oh… alright…" Zim spoke slowly.

"He's in room three-oh-one."

"I'll… be there as soon as I can." Zim hung up and sprinted over to the General Hospital as fast as his tiny little legs could carry him. He entered the hospital and sped down the corridors, which made him nervous. There were so many sick and injured humans… Irkens nearly never became ill, and when they got hurt they could be healed in thirty seconds by simply reprogramming the PAK. If their bodies were injured badly, they could just be replaced… so long as the PAK was intact. But this… this was nothing like the Irken medical system at all. This was so primitive, so inferior.

He opened the door quietly. He saw Dib's family members first— his father was sitting on a chair, close to Dib's bed, and his sister was sitting next to their dad, looking out the window. Zim wondered why she was doing that. The view was not particularly spectacular.

Then, his eyes fell upon Dib, and he gasped. There was a bag of blood with a long, clear tube going into his arm, and the surrounding bedsheets were stained in was Zim assumed to be Dib's blood. He felt himself began to shake.

Professor Membrane looked over at Zim. He stood up to his full height, which Zim found intimidating and admirable at the same time, and walked over to Zim.

"Sorry, Zim," he whispered. "I didn't mean for you to see him like this. The nurses and I were going to clean him up. I didn't know you would arrive so soon."

Zim jumped as the door opened and three people in blue clothes poured in, holding a gown and some sheets.

"Will you please wait outside?" Professor Membrane asked. "It'll only take a moment. Here, take Gaz with you." Professor Membrane walked back over and got Gaz. Gaz walked over to Zim with a disdainful expression.

"I'll come get you two in a moment." The Professor shut the door without another word.

Zim stood outside of the room nervously. He turned over to Dib's sibling, whose head was tilted towards the ground.

"What happened to him?" Zim asked. "He looks so… not good."

Gaz growled a little and raised her head up to him. "I don't know, Zim," she snapped. "No one does. Not even the doctors do. All we know is that his body is attacking itself and falling apart, okay?"

"Attacking itself?" Zim asked. "But why? Are human bodies supposed to do that?"

Gaz's eyes bore through him with an icy stare. "Do you _think_ they're supposed to?" Gaz said. "If they were, he wouldn't be in the hospital." She crossed her arms and leaned against the wall.

"Can't you do something about it?" Zim asked.

With a sudden motion Gaz wrapped her hands around Zim's neck. "Listen, you ugly stupid pea, I have no idea what's happening. No one has any idea what's happening. If we did, then maybe we could find away to cure him. Maybe. But guess what?" She tightened her grip as if to make a point. "We _can't. Do. Anything._ The fact that I've been stuck in this hospital for five days says something. So just shut up and quit asking me questions." She let go of his neck, shoving him into the wall. Zim rubbed his neck. He was a little afraid of Gaz, even though she was short— shorter than him.

To his relief, the door opened, and the blue-clothed people left carrying the bloodstained sheets.

"Alright," Professor Membrane said, popping his head out of the doorway with a nod. "You can see him now."

Zim crept into the room, looking at Dib there on the hospital bed, fast asleep. "Dib?" Zim asked. Dib didn't make any indication that he had heard Zim. "Why isn't he replying?" He asked Professor Membrane.

"Don't take it personally," the Professor replied. "Having him get up off of the bed so we could clean him up took a lot of energy out of him." Professor Membrane reached over and gave Dib's shoulder a gentle shake. "Son? Somebody is here to see you."

Zim could barely see Dib's eyes open momentarily, then shut again. He noticed that the sheets were becoming stained again. He noticed the deep gashes on Dib's arms. "Why does he… bleed so much?" Zim asked. Drops of blood fell onto the bed from Dib's arm.

"His skin is fragile," Professor Membrane explained to the best of his ability. Suddenly, Dib's body jumped, and he began to gurgle. Blood pooled in his mouth and down the sides of his face into the pillow. Professor Membrane yelled for medical help, and instantly doctors and nurses ran in. Zim suddenly felt too claustrophobic in that room, and he ran out without saying goodbye. He ran down the hallway and down the stairs and eventually, he ran out of the hospital into the cool, clear evening. Zim realized that a significant amount of time had passed since he was in the hospital.

He sat on a ledge outside of the hospital for a while. He buried his face in his hands. He'd always wanted to witness Dib's destruction, but… never like this. This was unfair. If they were fighting, Dib would at least have a fair chance at defeating Zim. But this… Dib didn't have a chance at winning.

Zim's stomach turned as he walked home. Human life just wasn't fair, he decided. He had had no idea.


	4. Chapter 4

Dib's body convulsed sporadically and blood fell from the corners of his mouth. Professor Membrane gripped Dib's hand tightly. The doctors began working immediately, draining the blood from his mouth so that he didn't accidentally inhale it and suffocate. Professor Membrane had sent Gaz out of the room. She didn't need to see this, he decided. She was just too young.

Dib's face was so pale. His eyes were lidded, and it looked like he was just barely holding on.

"Stay with me!" Professor Membrane said to Dib, giving the boy's hand a firm squeeze. "Don't shut your eyes! Please…"

All Dib could muster was another gurgle. His breathing was fast and erratic, and Professor Membrane noticed that the beeps on the heart monitor were fairly fast as well.

"Seems to me like internal bleeding," one of the doctors said. "Poor guy. He's getting these weird tears internally now. We just need to hope that these don't start appearing in a vital organ…"

Professor Membrane froze up. The doctor was right. What if one of these cuts appeared in Dib's brain? What would happen?

An MRI was quickly preformed, and Dib was inspected thoroughly, and after much discussion, thde doctors determined that it was not a collapsed lung, but rather a cut in his stomach, and that the boy had regurgitated blood.

"Well, I'm not sure that's much better news," Professor Membrane said. "But at least his lungs are okay. What's the treatment?"

"None," the doctor said. "It's too insignificant of a tear to preform surgery on, and with the state of his skin, we want to avoid surgery for as long as possible. We just need to let it heal naturally. Avoid acidic foods, stuff like that."

"But that was a lot of blood," Professor Membrane said. "Are you sure it's alright?"

The doctor nodded. "It was probably bleeding for a while, which gave it time to pool in his stomach. He's fine. See if you can coax some fluids into him, though. That's important at the moment." The doctor left without a word.

After calling Gaz back into the room, Professor Membrane followed the doctor's advice. He gave Dib some water, holding the cup up while Dib attempted to drink the it. It was a clumsy attempt, though, as most of it spilled. Dib opened his eyes and took the cup from his father. "You don't have to… hold it for me…" Dib said weakly. It was the first thing he'd said all day.

"How are you feeling?" Professor Membrane said. He remembered the tear in Dib's stomach. "Does your stomach hurt?"

Dib shook his head. Professor Membrane could see that the water was giving Dib a bit of strength, and he poured him another glass.

"No," Dib answered. "It did earlier, but it feels better now. I couldn't say anything, though… I was too weak." Dib finished off the glass with more success this time. There was a pause, then he spoke again. "By the way… was… Zim here? I swear I heard his voice."

Professor Membrane nodded. "Yes. He stopped by a few hours ago. But… he left." He didn't want to say, "he left because of your regurgitation of blood". That could humiliate Dib.

"Why did he visit?" Dib asked. "Any reason in particular?"

The Professor shrugged. "No. Not really. Guess he just wanted to stop by and see how you were doing."

Professor Membrane could see a suspicious look fall upon Dib's face. But it vanished when Dib's stomach growled loudly. "Can I have some food?" Dib asked.

"Of course," Professor Membrane said, leaving the room to go get Dib an apple or something.

As he was walking down the hallway, Professor Membrane thought. He wondered how he would be able to cure Dib. He knew Dib's cells were deteriorating, but only the Professor knew why. He couldn't let his secret leave Dr. Steiner and himself. If anyone found out…

He'd be doomed.


End file.
